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Watching an okama throw him a wink, even Bai Ye—who prided himself on his calm demeanor—could barely keep a straight face.
At that moment, it wasn't just Mr. 2 who was curious. Vivi, standing nearby, suddenly came to a realization.
All this time, she'd been hoping the Straw Hats would help her. She believed in them. Believed they could beat Crocodile.
But she'd never once offered them anything in return.
More importantly… they could've avoided this whole mess.
Crocodile still had no clue that the Straw Hats were working with her.
They could've just changed course and dodged the whole conflict.
Like Mr. 2 said—
Crocodile's bounty hadn't gone up in years, but that didn't mean he wasn't dangerous.
And apart from Bai Ye, the rest of the crew's bounties were way lower.
Realistically, taking on Crocodile could've meant serious injuries—or worse.
Not to mention, Crocodile still had plenty of strong subordinates.
"Why?" Vivi suddenly looked up at Bai Ye. "Why are you helping me like this?"
She wasn't doubting their good intentions—she just didn't understand it.
Why were they going so far for her, for nothing?
(Obviously, it's because of Robin… and maybe to check out the sights in Alabasta.)
That's what Bai Ye was thinking. But if he said it out loud, his image would collapse.
So instead, he looked at Vivi, eyes calm, lips lifting into a gentle smile as he said:
"That's our captain's decision."
Vivi stared into Bai Ye's clear eyes, momentarily dazed.
Bai Ye continued:
"When our captain said he wanted to help you, from that moment on—you became our crewmate."
"And us? We're the kind of pirate crew that would give our lives for our crewmates."
He couldn't help but keep up the cool act, throwing in a few more dramatic lines:
"As for the Seven Warlords…"
He paused, then chuckled. His whole vibe changed, exuding a quiet confidence:
"Our captain's destined to become the Pirate King. As his crew, why would we be scared of some Navy lapdog?!"
Vivi clutched her mouth, trying to hold back the tears welling up in her eyes.
So… she really was their crewmate now?
Thinking back on all their shared adventures, Vivi's tears finally spilled over.
In that moment—she seriously considered…
Becoming a member of Luffy's crew.
"UWAAAHHH!!!"
A weird wailing noise suddenly echoed through the room.
It was none other than the tightly bound Mr. 2.
"This kind of friendship… it's just too beautiful!!! I'm so touched I can't stand it!!!"
"WAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!"
"Brother Bai Ye, you're just too cool! I can't help but wanna kiss you right now!!" shouted Qian Qian.
At first, seeing Mr. 2 bawling his eyes out made Bai Ye feel pretty satisfied.
But after hearing the rest... yeah, he kinda lost it.
It's tough being a guy out in the world. You've gotta watch out for girls, sure—but now even guys aren't safe. And now...
You've gotta watch out for okama too?!
Mr. 2 was one of the standout characters in the original story. Especially that scene in Impel Down, where he helped Luffy escape and fought Magellan alone—that was a legendary moment for a lot of fans.
And yeah, it's pretty clear from all angles: Mr. 2 is the kind of guy who's easily moved by friendship.
That's exactly why Bai Ye said what he said.
And just as expected, after feeling the bond between the Straw Hats and Princess Vivi, plus his own connection with Luffy and the others...
Mr. 2—wait, scratch that—Bon-chan made up his mind.
That's right, once he decided to help, Luffy didn't hesitate to trust him. Their relationship skyrocketed instantly.
"Bon-chan" was Luffy's nickname for Mr. 2.
And Bon-chan gave Luffy a cute nickname too: "Lil' Straw Hat."
Everyone got one. There was Lil' Nami, Lil' Sanji... even Lil' Bai Ye.
Bai Ye protested loudly against this, but, well... it didn't change anything.
Anyway, Bon-chan had already made his decision—to help the Straw Hats.
As for how to help? Bai Ye already had a plan in place.
Back on the Going Merry, the Straw Hat crew were waving goodbye to Bon-chan.
Bon-chan stood on his swan boat, eyes brimming with tears, waving back at them.
"Lil' Straw Hat, Lil' Bai Ye... I will complete my mission."
"I'll be waiting for you!"
Bai Ye twitched at the corner of his mouth, thinking, The mission I gave him wasn't even dangerous...
Why does this feel like some tragic farewell?
Then again, a few people really were acting like it was.
Bon-chan, for one. And the three idiots on their own ship.
Luffy and the other two gritted their teeth, staring at Bon-chan with eyes full of sorrow.
As the swan boat slowly drifted away, Luffy finally couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into tears, yelling:
"BON-CHAAAAAN!!!"
"LIL' STRAW HAAAAAT!!!" Bon-chan yelled back, turning around and even reaching out his hand like he wanted to grab Luffy.
Bai Ye's eyelid twitched at the sight.
He flicked his wrist and pulled out a talisman.
[Talisman—Fleetfoot Charm!!!]
He flung the talisman, and it slapped right onto the swan boat.
In the very next second, the swan boat shot forward at a much faster speed, zooming off into the distance.
"BON-CHAAAN!!!"
BOOM!!!
Finally, peace and quiet returned to the Going Merry.
Later, the crew gathered in the meeting room, sipping drinks mixed up by Sanji and going over their battle plan.
First up—what was the situation in Alabasta?
Thanks to Igaram bringing the rain-summoning charm, there hadn't been a full-on rebellion of the 300,000 royal troops.
But just a few rainfalls weren't enough to make the rebels drop their weapons completely.
So for now, the rebels had retreated to their base in Yuba, and both sides were in a temporary ceasefire.
According to the plan Bai Ye gave earlier, the royal family would spend the next two weeks explaining the whole Dance Powder incident to the rebels, and try to catch the mastermind behind it all.
They hadn't reported anything to the Marines yet—because there was no proof.
No evidence that Crocodile was the real boss of Baroque Works. No proof that he planned the whole Dance Powder setup.
That's what made Crocodile so confident. His whole plan wouldn't show its face until the final showdown.
Up until then, he was pretty much untouchable.
The Navy wasn't about to arrest one of the Warlords of the Sea just based on rumors.
That'd be like slapping themselves in the face.
So everything they'd done so far was just buying time.
In the original story, by the time the Straw Hats reached Alabasta, everything was already spiraling out of control.
But now? As long as they could make it there in time...
Everything could be handled quickly.
That was Bai Ye's hope—the confidence of someone who'd crossed over into this world with cheat-code-level foresight.
But would things really go that smoothly?
"Colonel!"
At Alabasta's port, Smoker had just stepped off his warship when Tashigi called out to him.
She saluted and gave her report.
"Headquarters just sent word—they're sending reinforcements to deal with Whitebeard's Second Division Commander, 'Fire Fist' Ace."
She went on to explain the details.
After hearing who the reinforcements were, Smoker grinned around the cigar in his mouth.
"Not bad at all."
"....."